Searching for Willie Randolph

Searching for Willie Randolph

I am searching for a Willie Randolph (could be William), who is my paternal great-grandfather. We know most everything about his later life, but nothing about his early life or his people. The only information we have is:

- He died in Feb 1968 in New Orleans, Orleans Parish. I've sent away for his obituary from the Times-Picayune to see if it lists any relatives.- His death certificate lists his mother as Dora Manuel, but nobody knows the origin of that information, and my grandmother has passed on long ago.- Believe he was born in July 1906, possibly in New Orleans, but no birth record was found with the Louisiana Sec or State Vital Records (which is not un-common if he wasn't born in a hospital).- His family was from the Algiers section of the city (Ward 15) across the Mississippi river from the main city. Since Ward 15 is so close to the Jefferson Parish line, I'll try their records office as well.- He has 2 known sisters, but we don't have their names.- He married Mildred Medley of New Orleans sometime around 1940, and lived in New Orleans the remainder of his life. I can track him after 1940, but prior to that, it's like he literally rose out of the swamp (he apparently did love to fish).

He, or his mother, don't show up on any of the Census records I've tried; there are references to similar names, but the data and time lines don't seem to match up.

Anyone have any ideas? Could there be grade school records or property records I could search? What are the best avenues for me to try at this point? I'm fairly new to this so any help or tips would be appreciated.